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Acknowledgments

To my supervisor Terri Boake, thank you for guiding me throughout this long process. This thesis would not have been possible without your insight and patience.

To my committee member David Correa, thank you for your helpful and thorough feedback. The additional resources you provided me were exceedingly helpful in finishing this thesis.

To Michelle Bullough, thank you for selflessly offering your time to edit my writing, even when you are in the process of finishing your own thesis. Your feedback and suggestions were very helpful in making this whole thing more coherent.

To Wesley Chu, thank you for putting up with my numerous questions about page layout options during my process of putting together the book. Your feedback kept me sane as I struggled to organize all of these figures.

To the rest of my friends who offered up their couches and helped me “balance” my thesis life by keeping me company, thank you.

To my parents, thank you for letting me mooch off your food and shelter throughout this whole process, all the while limiting your questions on when I will be done to only once every other week.

To my past self, thank you for choosing such a “fun” topic.